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Are you looking for a non-phone job?
Do you consider yourself Internet and web savvy?
Would you consider yourself detail oriented?
Then becoming an SEO (Search Engine Optimization) Analyst might the right work-at-home (WAH) fit for you.
What Exactly is iSoftStone?
Founded in China, iSoftStone is an IT company that specializes in cloud, mobility, and application services. The company serves the technology industry, the healthcare industry, and the public sector. iSoftStone believes that employee talent is the greatest asset that a company can have and is constantly on the lookout for American workers to join their SEO Analysts on their USA Team (known as iSoftStone3).
What Does a Search Engine Evaluator Do at iSoftStone?
Have you ever wondered when you type in a search, why certain results (landing pages and website URLs) come up and in that order? Well, the search engine tools such as Google and Bing actually have algorithms that aid in the process. These algorithms “feed” off of keywords and other criteria.
Your job as an at-home SEO Analyst would be to query search engines based on a pre-defined list of keywords and websites. Then determine if the results are relevant based on your knowledge of the target market. To do this, you would be giving a numeric ranking of relevance to act as feedback to improve the search engine results.
If this confuses you, it may not be a fit for you. However, if the adrenaline is pumping and you can’t wait to get started then keep reading. This job is similar to other Internet Assessor-type jobs at Leapforce and Lionbridge.
What Are the Hours and Pay at iSoftStone?
The best part is the hours are flexible, and you can log in whenever you want. However, I am told that it is best to try to log on in the mornings to get the majority of work first. You can expect to receive 10 to 25 hours a week.
What is the Pay and When is PayDay?
The pay starts at $12 an hour in US funds. Payday is done via direct deposit or PayPal once a month.
Are You an Independent Contractor or an Employee at iSoftStone?
The position mentioned is an IC or Independent Contract position. You will be responsible for your own taxes and may receive a 1099 if you make $600 or more in any given calendar year.
What Skills/Special Training Do You Need to Work at iSoftStone?
You will need the following qualifications:
- native-level proficiency in English
- permanent residence in US
- high-level of awareness of contemporary culture
- responsible and results-driven
- capable of working a flexible schedule
- personal computer running Windows OS
- stable, high-speed Internet connection
- general proficiency with computer and web applications
- be at least 18 years of age
What is My Overall Impression iSoftStone?
I would have to say that it would be ideal for someone who enjoys this type of work.
How Can an Interested Applicant Apply to iSoftStone?
While iSoftStone does not advertise its WAH position on its web site, it does advertise as needed on Craigslist or Indeed. You would have to have an account with either one of those sites and then do a search for any future jobs. They usually will request a resume first.
Then upon evaluation of your resume, you will be sent an email with an assessment to see how good you are with evaluating Landing Pages and various web sites. If you do well on the first email, a second email will be sent to you to further evaluate your skills. At this point, should you do well again, you will be sent a link for self-paced training.
The training is free, and you are not paid for it, but you will want to do well enough on training to be considered for the job.
Good luck to all who apply in the near future. I am told that it can take up to 6-months to a year to hear back from the company via email.
Check Indeed Now for Openings iSoftStone+jobs
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Hi Leisa, great find!
Do you know whether iSoftStone uses the UHRS platform that Lionbridge and the rest use?
JB, my understanding was that it is very similar, but they basically have their own platform that they designed.
Can I apply and work for iSoftStone if I already work for ZeroChaos as a Search Engine Evaluator?
@Zheka – It does not appear that they have a non-compete clause at least at this time. However, it never hurts to send an email first before applying.
Is there any reason why the position posts as a Los Angeles, CA based position when you go to apply, when according the to the iSoftStone.com website, they don’t have an office in LA? Only in NY, Boston, and Seattle in the US.
I applied for this yesterday. I got a quick response from HR. He needed some info and docs returned then I can move forward in the process. I want make sure this legtimate before I continue. I did the exact same job with zerochoas but my yr contract ended in Jan.I loved that job !! I just make sure of everything before I continue. Anyone started? Any feedback would be awesome !!
Hi Megan, how did the process go for you? I applied really late last night and this morning had the same thing about returning documents before I can begin. Would love to know if your working for them by now and how it’s going…also is payment received at beginning or ending of month.
I did some work for isoftstone and once I was done with the work, I never heard from them again. And they didn’t pay me for the work I did.
@ meghan – One of the purposes of this blog is weed out scams and report on legitimate companies. We’ll lay out anything which we believe has too many red flags or is a scam.
iSoftStone is a legitimate company. You can also go to WorkPlaceLikeHome and check out a couple of threads there. Thanks for commenting.
Hi there I’m from The Netherlands and have just applied for a job at iSoftStone and received an e-mail with the same content, but was sent from China. Is anything known about outsourcing international recruitment? I read in your review that you need to be a permanent resident of the US.
Hi Hugo, same situation here. Did you continue the application?
Hope to here from you.
hear
Hi Leisa I am in the training process of search engine evaluator for isoftstone. They told me that it would be best to complete training and studying within 3 days. They give you one training video and a couple guidelines but it is still extremely difficult at times. I have watched the video and read the guidelines more than once or twice but still have a hard time. I have also not had time to finish the training judgments because of school. Do you know if I have to take the test yet even though they said it is best to take within 3 days and even though I am not ready? How hard was the test for you and is it a test over just judging or a multiple choice test? They have not been very clear on many instructions even though I have asked. I have also applied for leapforce and the training materials given by them have been extremely detailed and more helpful compared to isoftstone. I feel like the training is brief and the information is scarce. Is there any other training type exercises or guidelines for free online that may help? Thankyou for reading.
I agree with you. During the training, some of the task results did not seem to align with the guidelines, so I requested clarification. There were also technical issues. I did the training set and never heard back. The guidelines are inconsistent with the actual official results. I really enjoyed Lionbridge though and found they were more organized.
rar hear, I agree with what seemsto be non complance to guideline by the auditors, I gotsome judgemnts incorrect that I KNEW was correct it is so frustrating, I am reading the guiine nd matching it to the matrix and it Is incorrect!!
Can anyone give update about if they were hired or not? Is the work hours at least 20-25 a week? Pay? I’m going to apply tonight. Any information would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance
I was just hired on as an independent contractor for this position. Starting pay is $13 an hour, with possibility to increase to $15 depending on work quality (you can also increase your maximum amount of hours worked this way, too. Starting off the cap is 25 a week). Training is a tad confusing until you start to get used to their rating system (the training guide they have is almost 80 pages long!). I had to go through 200 training questions, then I was moved forward to a final test that consisted of 50 questions. After passing that I received confirmation that I would be hired on as a contractor, signed the necessary documents, and that was that.
@Elizabeth – And you never heard back?
Sorry for the vague wording! No, I heard back immediately, and was started on live work the next day after signing the documents.
That’s is all good to know….I just got my training email. Are you still working here? Going okay for you?
Yep, still working there. I’m getting a better understanding of exactly what they’re looking for as a judge, but it’s definitely a process. Take your time with training questions – try to look up an example in the training guidelines manual for each one they give you. Time consuming but worth it!
@Elizabeth – Glad that things are working out. You seem to be enjoying it too.
Elizabeth. …great! Thank you for the feedback and advice! I have saved my guidelines and have read them threw a few times….ready to give training questions a go! Thanks!
I did all the training and took the test ( all unpaid) but then was told ( immediately after submitting my test scores) that even though I did well, they were letting people go on this project, as well as not hiring new ones. Very frustrating after all the hours of unpaid training. Then they asked if I’d be interested in another similar project….and doing training (unpaid) for it. So I have to admit I feel like perhaps I’ve been had. Since I have not seen what the paid work is like, I can’t tell if they can use the work I did in training. I am wanting to know if anyone has worked for this company and received a check. I suppose it could be a coincidence but it is suspicious. It would be the perfect job for me IF it is real.
Sounds like a scam to me.
I understand that training is not that easy!
Hi I was so excited to begin the training process with them. They sent me instructions on how to log on to do the process but for some reason it will not accept my log in. I have contacted the person who claims to be the project manager with no response back from him. I tried calling phone numbers listed at bottom of his email and they are invalid numbers. Should I re-email the HR person who originally sent me the email that I would be hearing from a project manager. I am so disappointed I really need this job. Any help or info. would be great.
Thank you
Lisa
@Lisa – Yes, I would just keep in contact via email with the initial contact person. That way you aren’t going back and forth with too many people.
The numbers are for the china office.
i see there is a training video on this. Does anyone know if Deaf people could do this job? It doesn’t require hearing?
I’ve had a very challenging time finding WAH ops that do not require someone to be hearing.
I’ve heard back from iSoftstone but am researching more info first before I proceed further.
Thanks!
No, I don’t think any hearing is required
if you want to listen to the training video you need to be able to hear… or understand spanish…
Anyone know where to get the training video? Also, is the test timed? Are the questions like the training? Thanks! 🙂
The training video is in the email they sent you.
Lisa, I am in the middle of training trying to get the 60% required to take the test. Do you mean after doing the training,i might not get hired? My coordinator told me I need a 60% to do the test and make a 70% to get hired. I didn’t do too well and she sent me more training twice. My score is improving the more I do.
My score is getting *worse* the more I do them. I lost hope completely and I’ll just scratch this site off my dreams. I became so excited when I first heard about this, but it is incredibly *difficult*. I think this needs to be emphasized. The training does not seem to follow its own guidelines AND the ratings are so ambiguous. What is “slightly better” for one person can be “better” for another. Study hard and pray you have good luck.
Very interesting. Maybe this company is using your answers for their Engine Evaluation Program.
This Program uses judgment input, or feedback, received from one or more judges. Judgment input is provided. So, each of whom review at least one aspect of performance of a software application, and provide judgment input in the form of responses to questions. The judgment input is received and analyzed, and can be used to generate the one or more metrics. The metrics can be examined to evaluate at least one indicator in order to determine performance of the software application.
Find another job. This company is a waste of time and money.
Not everything works for everyone, Trevi.
But how to trust in an online company from China?
It looks like a hoax or maybe they are spies.
I worked for them on another project , they paid me right on time .. the pay was low but I used that as a In with the company for something better if one came along .. and just a week ago i got asked if i would partake in this project Search Engine Evaluating..I tried the website evaluation training and did poorly when I first started with isofttone ..they are very legit though , and the manager i had for the project i did was very response to my emails .. the website evaluation was odd , the tool we used had a list of websites and we would have to pick the best one with best results and on point to the subject . it was like comparing oranges with orranges … One thing i really admire with this company is if you did poorly on a test etc , they don’t put you to pasture and write you off , they will still send newly opened projects you’re way if the match is there .
My question is this , has anyone done both Search Engine Evaluating.. and website evaluation for isoftstone .. which one seems easier to grasp ? I realize we are all different on picking things up and understanding ..but any feedback on this would be great ..
Thank you
Ray
I’ve recently started the training for it and it’s fairly challenging. A lot of times the website LP was seemingly perfect but a single thing would throw me off.
A good example is the search “used cars in New York”. The page they want you to rate is a LP for autotrader.com/Newyork with Honda selected in the drop down menu. I selected excellent based on the websites rating, popularity, the correctness of the query, and information available and intent. (There was a drop down tab to the left in immediate view with other types such as ford and so on.)
Turns out the excellent and even good ratings were wrong. The system is very specific. The reasons for it being (I believe fair?) was because it was on a page just displaying Honda models it may not have been enough to satisfy the open ended search query. Even though you can still browse all the cars from that site via the drop down it didn’t matter. Getting into that mindset is very difficult.
Hi, I applies before I week and I signed the agreement before 4 days and till now I didn’t hear anything from them. Is the hiring process talk a long time?
can anybody answer me, Please
Hi,
Got a few questions on iSoftStone.
1. Do they hire people from India for online jobs? I know somebody wrote they don’t but I found the opposite also somewhere in net……
2. What is the website name? I find 2 sites – http://isoftstone.com/ and http://www.isoftstoneinc.com/. Not sure which is the right one.
Regards,
Ashiq
Hey, I just completed my online training test and from the looks on the report, it looks like I received a 68.4 percent. Is that enough to move along to the next stage, or was that to low of a score?
I’ve worked on my first project as a crowdworker with Isoftstone this january, but I still haven’t been paid. They are no longer answering my emails. My last answer from them was: you will be paid next week. That was three weeks ago. I am starting to consider them as a scam.
I have spent more than 4 hours of my time to complet the training (200 Hits). I reached the score required. But, there is no update, nor replay of my several email to the Project Manager.
Either I have to send en email in chinese, either I have to be more patient.
I signed up for Isoftstone about a year ago, but happened ot be having technical and health issue at the time, so I had received and signed my NDA, received the training email, but didn’t complete the process. Does anybody know if it’s possible for me to try to return? Are ppl still working with them? Having problems? Any info is much appreciated as I really need income.
There is one job for India. How can I know that it’s not a scan? Can I apply direct to HR of the company. If yes what is the email add?